The Spielman Laboratory

Our primary interests are in the field of in vivo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and spectroscopy (MRS) and the development of novel noninvasive methods for imaging metabolism within the body. Current projects include 13C MRS of hyperpolarized substrates for the assessment of glycolysis, oxidative phosphorylation, and other key metabolic pathways, optimized mapping of 1H metabolite distributions throughout the body, and quantifying neurotransmitter levels and cycling rates in the brain. In our laboratory, we have focussed on a novel array of both acquisition and analysis techniques for use in preclinical and clinical studies. These developments, which include improved spectroscopic imaging and shimming methods, multinuclear NMR studies, application of estimation theory for optimal data quantification, and the synthesis of new hyperpolarizeable 13C probes, address the inherent difficulties of low concentrations of the desired components, overlapping resonances, and magnetic field inhomogeneities caused by imperfect magnets and magnetic susceptibility variations within the body.

We study novel MR methods for in vivo imaging of metabolism.

Primary applications of this work include cancer diagnosis, treatment monitoring, and prediction of response to therapy, assessment of cardiac function, improved understanding and treatment of metabolic diseases (e.g. diabetes, NASH, liver failure) and neurologic disorders including Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia, and autism. The reseach addresses a broad spectrum of in vivo magnetic resonance problems, ranging from solid-state physics, MRI relaxation theory and contrast mechanisms, and spectroscopy to metabolic imaging in animal models and human subjects. The focus is on the development of new methods and the translation of these techniques to clinical practice.